I received some interesting feedback on last week's email.

Sal said I hit the nail on the head:

"Language and definitions are becoming very difficult to navigate in this country [America] as well. Words our generation considered to have a universal understanding no longer carry those meanings. Words are now defined by how you or your group choose to interpret them. It's a semantic jungle out here, Bob."

Graham, on the other hand, had a very different perspective:

"So don’t tell me the conversation with the politician stopped there!"

I can almost hear Graham's disappointment. Maybe this email will help clarify what happened—or maybe it won’t. But at the very least, you’ll learn a little more about me. And if you read to the end I have a special reward for you.

Let's go back and revisit the scene. I was having lunch in a friend's backyard when I discovered that the person sitting across from me was a politician. When he went back to the buffet line for seconds, I quickly Googled him and found out that Tom* had recently been demoted from a party position for speaking out against his political party's official stance on helping migrants from the Middle East.

So, when Tom* asked me, "Which denomination are you part of?" I decided to play the politician. Instead of directly answering his question, I shared my spiritual journey. I figured this was the best way to ensure he heard the Gospel. 

 I knew he was willing to be different, so this is where I started:

My spiritual journey is a bit different from most people's.

I was baptized, confirmed, and even became a Hindu before finally becoming a follower of Jesus.

When I got to university, my flatmate asked me a question that changed everything: "Bob, what difference has religion made in your life?"

To my surprise, I couldn't think of any real difference. I’d never seen anyone’s life change because of their faith in Jesus. So, when my flatmate said, "I've got a better way for you to connect with God," I was intrigued.

He introduced me to a branch of Hinduism called Transcendental Meditation. For a year, I spent 20 minutes each morning and evening repeating a mantra over and over.

I kept doing that until I met some real followers of Jesus during my second year at university. They talked about how Jesus had changed their lives.

You have to remember, this was the 1970s in America, and drugs were pretty prevalent. These Christians made quite a stir by flushing their drugs down the toilet. Now, I wasn’t into drugs—my biggest indulgence was Coca-Cola—but I was impressed that Jesus was making such a difference in their lives.

One evening, they invited me to a meeting at someone's house in town. During that meeting, I became convinced that Jesus had a right to direct my life. And because He wasn’t, I was in a heap of trouble.

So I said out loud, "Jesus, take control." And that's when Jesus began to make changes in my life.

The first change my mother noticed was that I took a typing class. For five years, I had refused to take typing, but now I did. And I’m so glad I did because today, as a computer programmer, it’s a skill I use daily.

The second change people noticed was how I started relating to people who were different from me. I’m a nerd, content to spend day and night in a computer lab. But after becoming a follower of Jesus, I began connecting with people on the football team and others who were different from me. God showed me that all people are equally valuable to Him, and that’s such an important attitude to have in the multicultural community I live in.

The third change was that I really began to enjoy reading the Bible. It told me what Jesus had done for me, and I wanted to know more.

So that's why I call myself a follower of Jesus—I want Him to control my life on a day-by-day basis.

And what that means for you is that if you see something in the Bible that tells me how I ought to be living and I’m not living that way, I want you to let me know. That way, I can ask God to make those changes in my life.

I wish I had kept the initiative and asked him to tell me about his spiritual journey. But I paused. He asked one final question, left the table for dessert, and spent the rest of the afternoon talking with other people.

When I share my spiritual journey, I try to tailor it to the person I’m speaking with. And with this politician, I wanted to emphasize how Jesus changes how we relate to people from different backgrounds.

Did I share the full Gospel? No. But I shared as much as I could in the context of this party. Some people may have been able to share more; others, less.

I rejoice in whatever you’re able to share.

OK. Now what is the reward I promised?

I will send a FREE digital candy bar with YOUR NAME on it to the first five people who send me an email with their spiritual journey.  To help you along, I suggest visiting the CoJourners website which will give you ideas on how to draft both a three-phrase testimony and a three-minute testimony. I will select some of the three-phrase testimonies for future emails.  

Have fun drafting the story of your spiritual journey. You never know when you might have the opportunity to use it.

Let’s pray:

“Lord Jesus, thank you for the opportunities you give us to share our spiritual journey. Keep us alert to the opportunities around us. Let us be both bold and sensitive. Help us constantly improve as we seek to help people come into a saving relationship with you. Amen.”

Have a great week making Jesus known.